Freedom of Expression* (*conditions apply)

It’s been a long time since I put up a post. And there are many things I could talk about. The regressive 377, the stereotyping that I see happening, or the attitudes towards mental health that I see in my field, could be talked about. But I have expressed about them through arts or words elsewhere on the internet, so today I’m going to focus on something much more basic and underlying: Expression.

Essentially, all our problems are related to expression. If I can express my poverty and get help, I have a good government. If I can express my sexuality and not be judged and jailed, I have a good judiciary. If I can express symptoms of a psychological disorder and be treated just like any other patient and not as a freak, I have good health care facilities. If I can tell my partner about the times when I really am angry and irritated, and he or she does not leave, I have a good partner. If I can express my sense of humour and be liked for it, I have good friends.

The sad part is not the lack of expression, but how expression is screwed in the favour of the majority or the dominant. These are straight people, the patriarchal men, the male partner, the rich patient, or some rich kid who caused a gruesome car accident but can hide it because his dad would bribe the news channels not to focus on it.

When expression is information freely available, then only will it be free. Or else, it will always remain the dominant discourse, bought and sold by the majority.